Several devices are known for processing food products. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,260,640 to Hartmann et al.; 4,258,066 to Bernard; 4,124,339 to Bernard; and 4,081,564 to Borsuk. These prior art devices relate to extruding and forming food product portions from raw or frozen food mixtures. Such devices do not provide for extruding a cooked food product and cutting the cooked food product to a desired thickness. Further, these prior art devices do not provide for cutting a cooked food product on the other side of an extrusion plate. Such processes and devices typically require the use of high pressure extrusion apparatus in the case of the devices and processes relating to frozen food products, and additional steps as well as material handling problems in the case of devices and processes relating to raw food products. In both cases, such processes and devices have been found to be relatively slow and expensive.
With respect to food products, it has become desirable both in the home and in restaurants, as well as in various other settings to utilize food portioned in predetermined serving sizes which are readily usable in preparing specific food products. For example, it has become desirable to provide serving portions of meat, cheese and similar food product of a predetermined size and weight for topping pizza and similar food items. Further, it has become desirable to provide serving portions consisting of a plurality of discrete food products which may be placed in cooked form directly on the food item being prepared for further cooking. In addition, it is desirable for these food portions to have a particular appearance, that being a particular color, as well as a particular size, shape and thickness. Preferably, these characteristics should be those of a fresh food product having the appearance of being homemade. Specifically, it is desirable to have a food item of random size and shape available which provides the appearance of a hand applied food product which may be precooked.
Consequently, a need has thus developed for a method and apparatus which processes foods products to produce a plurality of food product portions having a predetermined weight. The apparatus and process must not only be fast and cost effective, but must enable the formation of a plurality of different shapes and sizes of food products with very close weight tolerances which have the appearance of being hand formed and which may be precooked prior to processing.